Best Human Fics

A Voice Among the StrangersAn unsuspecting girl finds herself in Equestria, thrust into a world she has no concept of. Unable to communicate with the inhabitants, how will she cope?by Tystarr
205,112 words
· 2,535 · 62

Best Changeling Fics

Of the HiveAfter the royal wedding, a new changeling hive makes its presence known and wishs to open diplomatic relations. Twilight decides to use this opprotunity to learn more about them, but ends up getting far more than she bargined for.by law abiding pony
77,658 words
· 2,693 · 52

Princess Celestia: The Changeling QueenThanks to the love bomb at the Royal Wedding, Princess Celestia is revealed to be a Changeling Queen. How will Equestria, deal with this? And why is Celestia a Changeling Queen in the first place?by vren55
167,932 words
· 3,503 · 86

These fics get a place of honour, not just for their quality, but also for the amount of work they put into world-building.

Runners-up

Note: I have started moving these to the ssokolow's Recommendations group starting with the most obvious stuff and ending with the stuff that may require a re-read to properly categorize according to my current standards. You'll probably want to check there too.